37
My pen won’t remember you, but my blade certainly will.
They raced down spiraling, white marble stairs.
Round and round they ran as a chorus of battle cries bounced off the stone walls. When they finally reached the bottom and burst through the doors, they shuddered to a stop, gasping at the sight before them.
The white city of Genesis was crumbling. She tasted fire and brimstone in the air as wealthy citizens ran for their lives, covering their heads and screaming while guards in black uniforms aimed their rifles down every street, shooting indiscriminately.
Large sections of glass were strewn all over the cobblestones, and the sun’s heat rained down on the city.
The dome was destroyed.
For the first time, the people of Genesis gazed upon the true sky.
Her eyes flickered to several bodies lying on the street, their skin shredded and bloody with sharp glass embedded into their cloaks.
“We have to go!” Takeshi shouted over the torrent. “This way.”
He grabbed Khalani’s frozen arm, and they started running in the opposite direction, toward the White House.
They raced past the opulent shops and buildings she’d once dreamed of walking into. The windows were shattered, and Khalani could vaguely see figures crouching behind tables, shaking and crying.
Up ahead, three guards lifted their guns, aiming into a toy shop. Khalani’s eyes locked on a group of kids huddled inside, covering their heads.
Takeshi and Brock raised their guns and fired at the same time.
Shots exploded, ringing in her ears.
Two of the guards immediately collapsed, the bullets piercing their heads. But the other guard was still lifting his gun, aiming at a little girl with brown hair.
A deep, fiery anger surged through her. The blade was in her hand before she could even think. Khalani didn’t close one eye this time. She kept her sight locked on the target.
And let the knife fly.
Elise flashed in her mind. She relived that fatal moment when the blade sailed a few inches past her attacker, missing, as Ansel shot her in the next instant.
The knife sailed in slow motion, and Khalani saw it happening again.
The consequences of her inadequacies.
The little girl looked up just as the man put his finger over the trigger. But Khalani’s blade struck his arm, and the shot veered toward the ground. He screamed as Takeshi hurtled across the space and shot him in the head.
They all stopped in front of the store, staring in disbelief at the number of children—around twenty—hiding with stunned eyes and ashen faces.
The little girl with brown hair shook uncontrollably as Takeshi crouched to her level.
“It’s okay. You’re safe,” he said in a low voice.
The girl peered up, her cheeks stained with dirt as she softly croaked, “You’re here to help us?”
“Yes,” he answered solemnly. “We won’t let anything happen to you.”
The girl threw her tiny arms around him, barely reaching his back. Takeshi’s eyes widened, but with the arm that wasn’t holding the gun, he gently patted her back, his expression softening.
Khalani’s heart thumped wildly in her chest.
She’d never seen him around children. And with the savage glint in his eyes and the way he had mercilessly struck down the guard, he probably thought they were terrified. But the kids stared at him like a giant hero of old.
If war hadn’t been so ingrained in their lives, he would’ve made an amazing father.
Takeshi stood and turned to their group, an intense focus sharpening his gaze. “Someone needs to stay with them,” he said.
“Leave it to Winnie! She’s great with kids,” Winnie proudly announced, striding forward.
“I’ll stay too, in case any guards come back.” Derek moved ahead, but not before giving Serene and Khalani a tight hug. “You all better return alive or I’m gonna have to go to the afterlife and drag you back.”
They smiled as Takeshi gave him an extra gun and patted him on the back.
Brock moved toward Winnie, handing her his knife.
“You know what to do with this?”
“Stick it where the sun don’t shine.” A nervous smile came over her, and Brock grinned before kissing her on the cheek.
“Stay safe, Winnifred.”
Khalani rushed forward, hugging Winnie tight to her chest, not wanting to let go. But Winnie cupped her cheeks.
“You must go, Khalani dear. Don’t forget what Winnie told you.”
“I won’t,” she promised, squeezing her shoulders. “I will see you when this is over.”
She’d make sure of it.
They finally let go, and Winnie whirled toward the children. “Okay, kids! Let’s find a safer spot, and Winnie will tell you all a story.”
“Does it have magic?” one of the kids asked, following her.
“Magic. Dragons. Fairies. And the greatest love imaginable.”
Winnie’s voice faded into the distance as they ran away.
Khalani’s ribs were starting to cramp, and she was certain a sharp piece of glass was lodged in her shoe, digging into her heel. But she ignored the pain.
The symphony of death and misery spurred her onward.
She let the chaos fuel her as her feet pounded against the bloody road.
Suddenly, Takeshi yanked her back.
“What the—”
Crack!
A stone gargoyle fell from the building and crashed into the exact spot she’d been standing.
Takeshi swallowed hard, his shadowed gaze raking over her.
“You all right?”
Breathing was becoming an exhausting affair, but she gulped and nodded erratically. “Yes.”
He urged her forward with one hand at her back. He scanned every store they passed, his finger steady on the trigger, ready to annihilate anyone who stood in their way.
When they turned right onto a golden street corner, a group of ten guards turned in unison and raised their guns. Takeshi immediately pulled her behind him.
Her mouth opened in a silent scream.
But masked men on top of the buildings threw small gray spheres to the street…and they exploded.
The shockwave slammed into them, and she crashed to the ground, ears ringing. Takeshi cursed, helping her to shaky feet.
The masked assailants on the roof disappeared, but another group swarmed the remaining guards. The soldiers aimed their guns, but the masked men were faster, more vicious. They stabbed them in the chest, cut their throats, broke their necks.
Her jaw hung open as the guards were brutally cut down like paper. When they were all dead, one of the masked men dressed in black ran toward their group.
Takeshi raised his gun, but Khalani quickly put a steadying hand on his wrist.
“Raziel?” she called.
The top half of the Enforcer’s face was spattered with bloodstains as he came to a grinding halt. His knife was drenched in red, and he casually wiped the evidence from his arms. He gave Takeshi—who still didn’t lower his gun—a hard look before exchanging a wordless nod with Brock.
“Good to see you all alive.”
“Are you all right?” she asked, noting the wild fervor in his eyes and the neurotic twitch of his fingers on the blade, like he needed to sink the steel into someone else.
“Don’t worry about me. This is the most fun I’ve had in ages.” Raziel wiped his nose with dirty gloves as his men checked for survivors, killing anyone who so much as twitched.
“Where’s Jack and Spade?” Brock asked.
“They’re on the other side of the city. They radioed that the guards were slaughtering a bunch of people coming up from the underground elevator. They’re trying to save them.”
Serene gripped her hand. “Your message worked, Khalani! The people are rising.”
She barely had time to process the pivotal moment before Raziel’s bloodthirsty gaze settled on her.
“What do you need from us?” he asked, gripping his knife tighter.
She looked at Takeshi, who nodded, giving her the courage to speak. “We need to get to the Governor’s house. Can your men help us?”
“On it.”
Raziel waved over the group of twenty Aces, relaying the plan. They grabbed extra weapons from the fallen guards and stood at the ready.
“Where?” Raziel asked.
“This way,” Takeshi answered, leading the charge.
They ran like a black plague through the city, shooting down every guard in their path. She couldn’t look anywhere that wasn’t splattered with blood. Couldn’t walk without pain stabbing her foot or the unnerving scratch of glass grating her ears.
But they were almost to the end.
Khalani could feel it.
And if the people of Apollo were fighting back, they might have a chance of survival.
“Get down!” someone yelled.
Bodies dropped to the ground, and she was tackled by Takeshi. Serene huffed next to her as Brock did the same. She lifted her head, and a whole unit of guards—at least fifty—rushed the opposite end of the street and began firing.
“Shoot, damn it! SHOOT!” Raziel yelled.
The Aces lifted their guns from their prone position and fired. More guards fell, but they were outnumbered, and the soldiers were closing in fast.
“We need to get off the street!” Brock shouted.
They bounded to their feet, ducking into a nearby alley for cover.
“Aghhh!”
Khalani heard a fatal cry behind her and turned, her heart completely shattering.
It was Adan.
“NO!” Serene screamed, moving toward him, but Brock yanked her back into the alley.
Adan’s side was painted red as he lay on the ground. But his chest was panting up and down. She tried to escape Takeshi’s grip, but he held firm, refusing to let her go.
“We have to get him! He’s alive!” Khalani beat on his chest, her body on the verge of crumbling.
“Please!” Serene yelled at Brock, tears streaming down her pale face. Brock and Takeshi met each other’s gazes and, without speaking, came to an understanding.
“Give us cover,” Brock commanded Raziel, who gnashed his teeth and yelled to his men.
“Get ready to shoot!”
The Aces reloaded, pure carnage lining their severe expressions.
“On my mark,” Raziel began, his back to the wall, rifle pressed to his chest. “Two… One… FIRE!”
The Aces popped around the corner and fired their guns simultaneously. The guards ducked and ran for cover, halting their assault. Takeshi and Brock surged out of the alley and ran straight for Adan.